Look around any flight shortly after boarding and you’ll notice that at least 80 percent of your fellow passengers have their head buried in their newspapers or are busy scrutinizing their iPads. Watching the safety video just isn’t a priority for most travelers, even if it should be.

That’s why Air New Zealand likes to put an entertaining twist on its in-flight safety demonstrations, creating videos that get people watching -– even when they’re not on a plane. Previous videos have included elves, dwarfs and wizards, inspired by the movie, “The Hobbit”; an outdoor video featuring nature survival expert Bear Grylls; and a demonstration of safety techniques by the All Blacks rugby team.The latest Air New Zealand safety video to hit the skies features superstar comedian Betty White. The veteran actor visits the fictional Second Wind Retirement Resort where she presents the airline’s safety tips “Old School Style” thanks to the aid offormer “Mary Tyler Moore Show” co-star Gavin MacLeod and a host of other elderly jokesters. Golf carts, hearing aids, and other retirement village props are used to demonstrate safety techniques. But we don’t want to spoil all the jokes for you. Check out the video for yourself below.

Air New Zealand doesn’t let you down with videos; that’s for sure. This video, “Behind the Scenes of the Bear Essentials,” starring Bear Grylls, is just that: a behind the scenes video from “The Bear Essentials of Safety” video, which saw over two million views. Focusing on the outdoors goodness New Zealand has to offer travelers (instead of just, say, the plane itself), this video is a few things all at once: hilarious, informative and inspiring. The dramatic landscape is offset by the gritty tactics of Bear Grylls. So take a minute, watch this video, enjoy a laugh, and then join me in the endless brainstorming on when to finally visit New Zealand.

NBC has put out a casting call for a new reality show that promises to be quite an adventure. The unnamed show will be hosted by Bear Grylls of “Man vs. Wild” fame and features a large cash prize, although just how large remains to be seen.

The show’s format sounds vaguely familiar with the premise being that teams of two will be dropped in a remote location and will have to learn to exist in the wild while racing against others towards a finish line. The description indicates that the competitors will need to work together as a team, while maintaining their courage and determination, in order to avoid being eliminated. That seems to indicate that there will be distinct stages and challenges for the competition, not unlike CBS’s popular show “The Amazing Race.”

To audition for the show simply email the names of the two people on your team as well as the nature of your relationship, to bearshowcasting@gmail.com. The email should also include brief bios, occupations, contact info, photos and a note as to why you should be picked to be on the show. Contestants must be legal residents of the United States and 21-years of age or older on February 2013. A valid U.S. passport is also a requirement, which seems to indicate that this adventure will take place in a foreign country.

In the press release info that I received, the show is being billed as the “Ultimate Outdoor Adventure Competition.” If that sounds like it’s your cup of tea, than blast out that email ASAP. Now if only we can get a “Team Gadling” into the competition.

Much like his television show, the adventure will require participants to test their land and sea survival skills as well as a series of adventure tasks. The culminating test? A 36-hour wilderness expedition that involves tasks like making a fire in the pouring rain, building emergency shelters, foraging for food and river crossings.

“So many people have asked me over the years where they can learn extreme, practical survival – the type that requires spirit, determination and the skills to self-rescue against the odds, in some of the harshest terrain around,” saids Bear Grylls in a release. “Oh, and it may hurt a little.”

In 2013, Grylls plans to expand the course to Scotland, the United States and Africa.

On completion, enrollees will receive a badge, certificate and a Bear Grylls Ultimate Gerber knife. The price for this torture experience? A cool £2,999 per person (excluding flights).

Bear Grylls is one of those television personalities that is very polarizing – you either love him or hate him. His approach to travel and adventure, often with a complete disregard to his own welfare, has earned him fans and critics alike, and has made him an easy target for parody.

Take the video below for example. It was created by an Australian company called Priceless Productions and features a Bear impersonator named Elliot Loney, who must learn to navigate through the perils of the urban jungle. In this mock show, entitled “Man Vs Metro,” you’ll find travel advice that is at least as dubious as anything Bear has ever offered us.